Various types of swivel rocker chairs have been known which allow a person seated in the chair to both rotate about a vertical axis and pivot back and forth. While other types of chairs might allow the back of the chair to pivot relative to the seat, swivel rocker chairs are constructed so that the back and seat of the chair pivot and rotate together as a unit. Swivel rocker chairs generally include a base portion and a seat portion, with the seat portion generally including a back portion and potentially armrest portions. Different mechanisms have been employed for securing the base portion of swivel rocker chairs to the seat portion, and these prior art mechanisms have suffered from several deficiencies. First, these prior art mechanisms often fail to provide a secure connection, which can result in the seat falling off of the base and potential injuries to the chair occupant and bystanders. Further, because many chairs are packaged so that they may be assembled on site by the end user, the parts and/or assembly instructions are often not sufficient to ensure that the chair is assembled properly so as to maintain full functionality and stability.